Kai's eyes snapped open suddenly, panic in filling his mind. He had heard something; felt a presence. It was unnatural, but definitely not unfamiliar.

The sound of bending wood confirmed his fears as he sat up and looked toward the door. It was open, and the board and nails Nya had locked the door with the night before were now pried off. But it was done without a hammer; somebody with inhumane strength had ripped it clear off.

"Kai..."

As predicted, the woman appeared, dressed in a loose, flowing gray dress. Her face was fair, and her purple eyes flared bright enough to light up the area where she stood. Kai looked to the side of the room to warn Jay and Nya of the imposter, but they weren't there. They had disappeared.

"Kai, look at me." Kai jumped, startled; the woman was suddenly staring into his eyes, barely inches away from his nose. "Heed my warning, Kai. Do not step foot into the woods once the sun sets. I do not want to be the one to end you."

"End me?" Kai repeats, voice cracking. "What do you mean?"

But the woman refused to answer. She simply pulled away and caressed Kai's scarred cheek, making him tense up. A small smile came to her thin lips as she moved away from Kai, repeating her warning.

"Don't go into the woods, Kai. Don't let them see you. I don't want to be the one to end you..."

Kai bolts upright suddenly, panting hard. It took him almost an entire minute to realize it had been a dream.

He slows his breathing back to normal as he sees it really had been a dream; Jay and Nya were safe and sound, sleeping on either sides of the room. And the wood and nails on the door that had been pried off were still there. None of it had been real.

He lays his head back on the pillow, his nerves trying to calm themselves. But it was nearly impossible with the dream fresh in his mind.

Sweat began to fall from his forehead, and Kai wiped it off with his sleeve. It had suddenly gotten hot, which was ironic since Night provided the coldest weather. But with the uncomfortable sweat came a big pounding in his heart, and Kai immediately knew something was not right.

Nya wakes up quickly to Kai's poking finger. "What is it?" she asks groggily. But as she looks up at her brother, she could tell that something's happened.

"I think there's someone downstairs," Kai whispers to her, and Nya's eyes widen. "What?" she asks, and Kai quickly covers her mouth.

"Listen," Kai tells her, and Nya shuts up. At first, everything was quiet, and Nya began to believe Kai had been mistaken and almost told him to go back to bed. But just then, a deafening and powerful blow collides with the door, and a nail in the board whizzes past their heads. Nya screams, which wakes Jay up.

"Nya!" he says, almost shouting. "Are you okay? What's happened?"

As if responding, another blow crashes from the other side of the door, and Jay jumps up, startled. Nya runs to the other side of the room, gets behind the old wardrobe, and begins pushing it. Immediately, the other two boys help her, and they all push the entire wardrobe to the pounding door. Kai presses his weight against the closet, and Jay and Nya join him.

But the figure kept pounding and pushing from the other side, and already the wardrobe was beginning to slide a few centimeters. Whoever was behind the door had inhuman strength, and more importantly, they were trying to get in.

The three teenagers continued pushing and shoving the wardrobe into the door, blocking the villain's way in, but the fear spread between them.

It's only a matter of time.

However just then, everything became eerily quiet. The pounding had stopped, and none of the three dared to make a sound.

Just when they thought they were safe, though, a thunderous grinding sound vibrated the entire room, making everything wobble. Kai screamed and covered his ears, in pain of the sudden noise. Suddenly, his ears felt vulnerable. The noise stopped as quickly as it started, and everything was quiet again.

"Wait," Jay says. "Listen. I think it's walking away,"

Nya pressed her ears against the door. He was right; the sound of footsteps retreating were heard very clearly. She turns back to the boys nodding her head, confirming that Jay's words were true.

They were all safe. But it didn't have to be spoken nor guessed that whatever was just there was coming back. And this time, they were going to bring backup.

Cole wakes up on the dirt in the woods, where he had fallen asleep. He had been calling for his brother and friends for almost three hours, and had gotten no response. It was disturbing to be alone in such an environment, especially with Night merely hours away from officially beginning.

A rustling in the bushes ahead made Cole snap fully awake. "Hello?" he calls out. "Who is it? Do you need help?"

Hesitating, the little boy gets up onto his feet and cautiously makes his way to a bush, which was now silent.

"...hello?" Cole says.

But just then, he feels a furry hand over his mouth and nose, and everything goes black.